


(Say me name) And every color illuminates

by laddyqueen



Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Clarke pov (kinda), Multi, Not a One shot anymore, One Shot, Soul Mate-Au, but also not true to canon so..., fits into canon very closely, mainly clexa, not really Au at all, slight AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-07-20
Updated: 2015-09-07
Packaged: 2018-04-10 06:40:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,383
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4381175
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/laddyqueen/pseuds/laddyqueen
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Everyone sees the world in black and white until the first time they hear they soul mate say their name than the world is screaming color. (yes this is a Taylor Swift reference)</p><p>Clarke Griffin is convinced she will die having never seen colors.  Every time she thinks this might change something happens that re-convinces her that she is destine to die while the world is still black and white.  She doesn't expected it when it happens but it does.  She meets here soul mate. </p><p>Title from the song "Spectrum" by Florence and the Machine</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Clarke finds her soul mate

**Author's Note:**

> Not sure if this Au has been done, I know there are Clexa Soul mate Au's out there but I haven't seen this exact one yet but it was screaming to be written today (so much so that I wrote it instead of working on my other fic or, you know, my school stuff, like I should have been in the first place. Nothing like getting distracted form the distraction.) ANYWAY hope you enjoy. 
> 
> Sorry in advance about grammar and spelling. I recognize that it is horrid form past experience with writing for school but can't actual tell to fix it (sorry).

Clarke lay on the bed in her cell thinking about colors. She sighed; she wondered how much she was really missing. She knew from others talk that being able to see colors didn’t change much on the Ark as almost everything was the same cold steel grey color. But still it would be nice to experience color before she died, but since she would die in a month, and was in solitary she doubted she would get to see color. She wondered it some where on the Ark there was someone, someone who was meant to be her soul mate, who would also never see color because of her death.

About an hour went by and Clarke had moved to the floor and began to drawing scenes of Earth from memory on what little blank space was left. There were advantages to being the daughter of a Council member, even when in prison. Her mother was aloud to visit, though she rarely did, hadn’t since the beginning, but she did send gifts, mostly drawing supplies.

Clarke has surprised when she heard the door open, it was to early for dinner, and they had already collected her lunch tray. Clarke turned to see to guards standing at the door, one holding a small box.

“Prisoner 319, face the wall.” The first guard spoke.

Clarke rose and faced the wall as panic came began to set in. Had she really lost track of time, and lost a whole month it couldn’t be her birthday yet. Trying to sound as calm as possible she asked her question. “What is this?”

“Quiet,” was the only answer she got. “Hold out your right arm.”

Clarke turned to face the guards. “No, no it’s not my time I don’t turn 18 for another month.”

“Hold out your right arm.” There was no change in the guard voice to indicate what was going on.

The guard went to remove the watch on her right wrist to replace it with the cuff in his hand and Clarke fought back. The watch had been her fathers and it was all she had left of him.

Clarke knocked both guards off balance before running out of the cell and closing the door. She stopped just outside her cell. In the year she had been in prison she had only been outside her cell for weekly showers, and only knew how to get to the showers. She didn’t know where she would go but she had heard of people stowed away under floorboards or in closets. There was one girl who had been hidden for 16 years before they found her. Any life had to be better than certain death, they wouldn’t let her live, she knew too much. It only took about a minute for her to notice that all the prisoners were being led form their cells. She would never escape unseen.

“Clarke stop.” Just as she was about to move forward she heard a familiar voice, the voice of her mother. In that moment she knew what was happening. They were killing all the prisons now, regardless of age, to conserve air and buy time for everyone else. They would make it look like a malfunction and write it off as a terrible tragedy, tell themselves it had to been done to ensure the survival of the human race.

Clarke pleaded with her mother for an explanation, a confirmation of what she knew in heart that she was as good as dead. She hadn’t been fully wrong. Her mother said they were being sent to the ground, and that was just as bad as execution, probably worse. All 100 of them would die, a painful death caused by radiation poisoning on the ground. Maybe she was wrong, the ground was the dream after all, but it was her new nightmare. 

* * *

 

Clarke didn’t think about colors again until they were on the ground and off the drop ship. She heard a few of the other 100, no one she knew by name going on about how pretty all the colors were, especially all the greens. But she pushed the thought of colors from her mind. If they were going to die of radiation poisoning they would all be dead within about 48 hours, and if not they were going to need to survive, at that meant getting to Mount Weather.

About an hour or so later Clarke set of with her small group, the girl who had been hide in the floor, Octavia, the idiot who got two of the killed, Finn, and two other boys Jasper and Monty.

It was clear that Jasper, Monty, and Finn had found their soul mates. Clarke suspected that Jasper and Monty were each other’s soul mates. There of them pointed out different colored objected to one another as the walked on. As far as Clarke could tell Octavia couldn’t see them either.

For the first time since landing Clarke truly wished that she could see Earth in all its glory but was glad she got to see it at all, even if she did die that day. She was just starting to believe that they could survive on Earth and that they could truly be happy, when Octavia was attacked by what appeared to be a sea serpent from old-Earth legends. In that moment Clarke realized that it might not be the radiation that kills them it might be the earth.

When Jasper was hit with a spear and she realized they weren’t alone, she realized it would likely be the inhabitants of Earth that killed them.

In the whirlwind that followed Clarke did not realize that there being survivors on Earth meant that she still had a chance of meeting her soul mate and getting to see the colors of earth. She didn’t have this realization until Octavia came to her a few weeks later.

“Can you see colors?” Octavia asked as she sat down beside Clarke.

“No, and I doubt I ever will. There weren’t many people on the Ark, must of those I didn’t know where older or in prison, and I know them all now, they’ve all said my name.” Clarke answered not looking up from her sketch.

“I can, just started to recently.” Octavia said, truing to look at Clarke.

“Who?” With less the 100 people on Earth, that they were talking at least, Clarke couldn’t imagine Octavia hadn’t already ruled them all out, than she remembered the Grounder. “That Grounder?”

Octavia nodded. “Yeah, his name is Lincoln. The same thing happens for them. You can’t tell Bell though, you know how he is when it comes to me and when it comes to Grounders.”

Clarke nodded before she got lost in her thoughts. Could her soul mate be a grounder? Is that why there were always people in every generation who never got to see colors, because their soul mates were on the ground and they were in space. 

* * *

 

When Clarke had sex with Finn she was doing it because she need to feel something just as much as he did. They both need reassurance that they weren’t in this alone; that even if those on the Ark all died in space before they realized the ground was livable, they had someone who understood, who cared. She did it knowing that he wasn’t her soul mate, but thinking that she could learn to love him if she need too, and hoping that he could do the same, not realizing he already did.

Her heart broke when she saw the way Raven kissed him, knowing he could see color she assumed they were soul mates. She was out right confused when Finn mentioned something by color and Raven was confused. He complemented her jacketing; saying the shade of red suited her well. She asked how he knew what color it was.

It wasn’t long until Clarke realized two things: One, just because some one is your soul mate doesn’t mean you are theirs as was the case with Finn and her, she was his but he wasn’t hers. And Two, just because someone isn’t your soul mate doesn’t mean you can’t love them truly and fully. 

* * *

 

When Clarke meant with the grounder leader she was excited for two reasons. She was most excited for the possibility of peace between the Grounders and them selves but also for the possibility of meeting her soul mate.

But Anya wasn’t Clarke’s soul mate and they didn’t achieve peace that day.

In the days to come Clarke didn’t think once about colors or soul mates. She was worried about war and survival instead. She would be okay with never meeting her soul mate if it meant that she could survive and save her people.

When the ring of fire worked and they emerged form the dropship Clarke was genuinely happy. The Ark had come to the ground, even with her mother dead she could still go back to living among the rest of her people. They would offer technology and protection, and together they would stand a greater chance against the Grounders. But first she had to find Bellamy, Finn and the others who hadn’t made it one the drop ship.

That’s when the gas filled the air and Clarke’s thought turned fuzzy. Before she lost consciousness she caught her first glimpse of Earth’s other survivors, another one of its many treats, the Mountain Men.

* * *

 During Clarke’s time in the Mountain colors were the furthest thing from her mind, even when Dante showed her is painting of his memories of the ground.

In her time on the ground Clarke had learned many things, chiefly that things are rarely as they seem. On the surface it seemed like the Mountain was welcoming. That it was their safe haven on Earth. But see knew that there was no such thing. She couldn’t believe that her people had come down form Space just to be trapped underground never to see the ground again. Nor could see believe that Dante was telling them the truth, that all their people were dead and that he was just offering them a safe place to live. She knew form first hand experience that rulers don’t share the whole truth with their people. And so Clarke dug and she found the Mountains secrets, what they so desperately wanted to hide from them. She didn’t learn that all the Mountain Men knew what their treatment was and wear it came from.

For the second time in her short life she found herself knowing to much to be aloud to live and so she was forced to escape the Mountain with Anya, promising herself that she would come back for her people. 

* * *

 

Clarke hadn’t realized how used she was to being the leader of her people until she wasn’t anymore. Her mother was Chancellor; at least until Kane returned, and at any rate her people where still in the Mountain. At least most of them were. Octavia, Monroe, Raven, Bellamy, and Finn had survived and for the most and were still willing to follow her lead despite the risk it carried.

When Clarke realized that she could save the reapers, turn them back into men she realized that she could finally make peace with Grounders and save her friends. She also realized that her mother and Kane would never go for. So she took it on herself to present a deal to Commander. Offer the help of her people, their technology and knowledge to free the prisoners of the Mountain, Grounder and Sky Person alike.

As Clarke approached the Commanders tent she silently prayed that if they killed her and she never returned that Bellamy and Finn and the others would be smart enough to follow the Arkers or that her mother would sedate them and take them with her if they didn’t follow willingly.

She was stopped outside the tent by a large brutish man, “If you so much as look at her the wrong way, I will slit your throat.”

Clarke swallowed but kept a straight face. She would not show these people that she was afraid, that she was weak.

Clarke entered the tent and got her first look at the Commander, she had not expected her to be beautiful. “So you are the one who burned 300 of my warriors alive.”

“You’re the one who sent them there to kill us.” Clarke was surprised how easily the response came. All of her nerves were settled. She had to make this work and worrying would never make that happen.

“Do you have an answer for me, Clarke of the Sky People?” Lexa asked, gaze never faltering.

The world burst in to color before Clarke’s eye. She knew that her shock must have some on her face by the flash of confusion on the Commander’s face. She quickly brought her expression under control. “I’ve come to make you an offer.”

“This is not a negotiation.” The Commander stated. The fierce ebony-skinned women standing next to the Commander’s throne said something in their language but the Commander lifted a hand to silence her.

“I can help you defeat the Mountain.” Clarke could tell form another almost nonexistent change in facial expression that she had the Commanders attention and grew hopeful that this would work.

“Go on.” The Commander folded her hands over the knife now resting in her lap.

Clarke explained what she had learned in the mountain and how she and Anya escaped all while trying to ignore the new vibrant world of color she found herself in. The other women present, clearly a guard or advisor of some sort grew more and more frustrated with Clarke, clearly not believe a word out of her mouth but the Commander told her kept her at bay.

The Commander got off her throne and stepped down to stand close to Clarke. “You say you can turn reapers back into men?

Clarke nodded staring into the Commander’s impossibly green eyes. “Yes”

“Than prove it, show me Lincoln.” The Commander demanded.

Clarke turned and left the tent followed by the Commander and everyone else who had been inside. 

* * *

 

On the walk form the Grounder camp to the drop ship Clarke takes in as much color as she can, but despite how beautiful the world is in color her eyes keep drifting back to the Commander. Each time she looks at the girl walking along side her she catches her watching her and quickly darting her eyes back to the path in front of them

“You know my name, can I know yours?” Clarke asked hesitantly. She had heard the grounders call her Heda but she wasn’t sure it that was her name or her title.

The commander was silent for a moment as she stared into the woods ahead of them. Slowly she turned back to Clarke. “Lexa.”

Clarke turned to face Lexa. This time the other girl didn’t look away. “Thank you for hearing me out, Lexa.”

Clarke paused when she saw Lexa’s eyes widen, the same way she knew hers had when Lexa said her name back in her tent.

In that moment Clarke new that no matter what happened she had found her soul mate, and Lexa had found hers.


	2. Lexa finds her soul mate

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So here is another chapter. Notice I didn't say next. So one of my many ideas for the coninuation of this fic was to write the events of chapter one but from Lexa's point of veiw. No matter how hard I tried to just continue the story I kept coming back to this. So this is Lexa's story up to the same second that the first chapter ended. The next chapter will pick up there and will likely abandon the limited to one person point of veiw stuff. 
> 
> Thanks for waiting so patiently for this update and I hope you enjoy it.

Anya was already asleep in their shared tent when Lexa returned from guard duty. As a second she often got stuck with later guard duty or early morning shifts, but some day when she was a first with seconds of her own it would all be worth it. Lexa smiled when she found Anya asleep. She quietly took off her armor and placed it on the empty bed before leaving the tent again.

Lexa moved through the camp without making a sound. When she reached her destination she stuck her head in the tent. _“Cos, you awake?”_

When no response came Lexa quietly entered the tent. She shook the sleeping girl awake. The girl looked up at her with sleepy eyes. _“I thought you weren’t coming tonight? I have the morning duty and need my rest, Lex.”_

 _“I wanted to see you. It’s been days._ ” Lexa smiled as she climbed into bed with the girl she was falling in love with, despite knowing she wasn’t her soul mate.

Their relationship had started as just sex. Lexa had been reluctant at first. She was young and idealistic still hoping that she would be one of the lucky few that would find their soul mate and see colors before they die. But over time the connection with Costia only grew stronger and Lexa felt herself falling for the other girl. When Anya found out she told Lexa to cut her out of her life. Love is weakness she had said; this girl is nothing more than a distraction. Lexa nodded but continued to see the girl in secret.

Costia hummed in her sleep next to her, and Lexa thought that she could be happy with Costia; she loved her and didn’t need colors to know that for sure.

But a week later Lexa was called to lead her people and everything changed. Her training became more specialized and more intense. But Lexa still made time to see Costia, though in her new position of Commander it was no longer a secret, no one dared stop her taking anyone to her bed, though Anya gave it her best attempt.

The day Costia went missing Lexa felt her heart break a little. It had been two years since she was called to lead and she had only fallen more in love with the other girl.

When the Ice Queen delivered her Costia’s head Lexa felt like she would never love again. Anya had been right. Love was weakness, and as leader of her people Lexa could not afford to be weak. She formed the Coalition after that, for the sake of all her people.

* * *

 

Lexa was in her tent sharpening her favorite dagger when she heard the shouts in the camp out side. She went to see want they were going on about and saw the stream of fire through the sky. She saw the impact as what ever it was hit the earth just a few miles from Ton DC.

 _“Mountain men?_ ” Indra asked.

 _“Maybe, but I think it came form the sky. Ryder, Gustus, go as scouts to see what it was. I want a full report by night fall.”_   Her trusted guards and advisers nodded before hurrying out of her sight.

When her scouts returned they brought news of people who had fallen from the sky. They all appeared to be young, some of them child even. They had little order though there appeared to be one girl who stood out as their leader. Gustus said that the girl had taken a small group and headed in the direction of the Mountain. Lexa sent a small party to monitor the sight of their camp and another to watch the small group the girl led. _“Do not let them reach that Mountain. I will not have them angering the Mountain Men. But do not engage them unless you must. I want you to observe them and report back to me.”_

In the events that followed it became clear that the Sky people, as she and her people had taken to calling the new comers, new nothing of either them or the Mountain Men. This made them a treat to the relative peace she had sacrificed so much to achieve. She instructed her warriors and scouts that they could kill any of them that passed a certain point but for the time being they were not to attack. There was still a chance that she could make peace with the Skiakru.

Lexa was shocked when Anya approached her and told her that she was meeting with the Sky girl leader. Anya had been pestering her about how it made her appear weak to let them live. She permitted Anya to go, knowing that she would go anyway. Lexa hoped that Anya wouldn’t start a full on war by going to this meeting.

But nothing ever went Lexa’s way. She was sitting in her throne when Anya returned, two days later. Anya explained everything that had happened. The attack at the meeting, their capture of the Sky person leader, Clarke was her name, Tris’ injury and death, and Clarke’s escape. Anya said that they had more people, trained soldiers and healers, coming down from the sky soon. Lexa knew then that she had to allow an attack.

The attack was planned. Lexa consented and let Anya lead the attack choosing to stay back and begin plans for when the rest of the Sky People came down. It had been a good thing that she had because all 300 warriors that had gone to battle the Sky People were killed in that battle, but so were a vast majority of the Sky People. 

* * *

 

Lexa put out a bounty on all Sky people when they rest of them fell from the sky. One man came to her, claiming to be their leader and wanting to make peace between their peoples and another was brought to her from the waste lands. She intended to use them to see if they were serious about making peace, but then the Sky boy Finn massacred Ton DC, and blood demanded blood. Lexa was forced to make an example of her prisoners, but she showed them some mercy, enough to be seen as fair but not weak, since it seemed that the one who called himself their leader was serious about his peace plea. She gave them the opportunity to flee, to leave Trikru land, and on that condition she would let them live.

All seemed to be going well. It seemed that the Skaikru was readying themselves to leave. There was talk of them heading into the wasteland. But then Clarke returned. Rumors trickled in through her scouts of Skaikru held captive in the Mountian. Clarke intended to save them.

Lexa was not surprised by the stubbornness of Clarke. If she was being forced to leave while her people were held captive she would also refuse to leave. What did shock her was when Clarke made her way to her camp, to her tent, seeking a meeting with her.

Lexa donned full ceremonial Commander armor and war paint for the meeting. She admired the confidence the other girl had as she entered the tent, knowing that Gustus would have threatened her life before allowing her to enter. Lexa cut right to the point, not giving Clarke the benefit of a greating. “So you the the one who burned 300 of my warriors alive.”

“You’re the one who sent them there to kill us.” Lexa watch Clarke intently trying to read her face when she spoke.

“Do you have an answer for me, Clarke of the Sky People?” When Lexa spoke Clarke’s name the girls eye’s widen and left her own face for the first time since the girl had entered the tent. Lexa felt her face begin to show her confusion. Why had she reacted that way, she had to have known that Anya would have told her the name of their enemies leader.

After gaining control of her facial expression Lexa returned her attention to Clarke and heard her out. She said she could help them defeat the Mountian.  Clarke claimed to have escaped the Mountian, with Anya. She presented her with Anya’s braid, clearly she had learned something of their customs in her time on earth. Clarke must have known that showing her understanding and respect for Trikru customs would gain her some trust and respect from Lexa because it wasn’t until after this that Clarke finally made her offer. Clarke claimed that she could save the Reapers, turn them back into men. If she was telling the truth then Clarke was right, she, and her people, could have a role to play in the defeat of the Mountian.

“You say you can turn Reapers back into men?” Lexa asked as she approached the other girl.

“Yes.” Clarke was now staring directly into Lexa’s eyes.

“Then prove it, show me Lincoln.” Lexa demanded while looking back into Clarke’s eyes. 

* * *

 

Lexa let Clarke lead the way and was surprised when she realized she was being lead toward the original Skiakru camp rather then the new larger and  better defended one the new comers had set up. Lexa found herself staring at Clarke as they made their way through the forest. Clarke seemed enthralled by the forest around them in away that seemed familiar to Lexa. Surely Clarke had noticed the beauty of the forest before today. It wasn’t until the fourth time Clarke seemed to slow, as if she wanted to stop, when the passed a new plant that Lexa realized where she had seen this before. Colors. This is how people behaved when they began to see colors for the first time. Lexa wondered how long she had been able to see colors and who her soul mate was; could it be a Grounder, someone she just meet today?

The sound of Clarke’s voice, softer and less sure then it had been in her tent, brought Lexa’s thoughts back to their journey. “You know my name, can I know yours?”

Against better judgement Lexa answered, never taking her eyes off the other girl. “Lexa.”

Clarke smiled and brought her eyes up to meet Lexa’s. “Thank you for hearing me out, Lexa.”

For a fraction of a second Lexa was going to tell Clarke that she couldn’t call her by her name but then she noticed the color in Clarke’s face, especially her eyes. Lexa knew that she was letting her shock show on her face but couldn’t find it in herself to care.  After all she had gone throught, all she had lost and sacrifed Lexa had found her soulmate; Clarke, the girl who had fallen from the sky, defeated 300 of her warriors, escaped the Mountain, and claimed to be able to bring Reapers back to life.  As Lexa pulled her eyes away from Clarkes face to take in the colors of the forest she knew that she was screwed.

**Author's Note:**

> So originally this was going to be a one shot but I got a couple request to continue it plus had a couple of ideas about continuing it. So I am continuing it. The next chapter is almost done and should be up within the week. 
> 
> Thanks for reading so far!!!


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